Don Fosters review- Grand Caymons

[michaelaz]

I did a dive with DF on Dec 21 as part of the cruise ship Miracle excursion. Normally I do not use boat excursions due to size and cost but I wanted to guarentee a dive so I dove with DF who only books thru the ship for $99.

 

We dove Eagles Nest and "The Ledge".

 

Call me spoiled,pampered whatever but the first thing that struck me is DF did not set up any equuipment or even offer. They did not help with weights which to me is more dangerous than anything as you have 20 divers carring 5lb weights around the moving boat where I saw at least 1 5lb dropped on 1 persons foot. No one should have a dive or vaction ended because of a broken foot,very easy to happen should a weight hit you square.

 

Quick side note, newbie certified family of 3 ,Dad,Mom 40 ish and teen son 13-14,decide that they need to bring all their gear in their Luggage bag, Im not talking small dufel, Im talking the biggest size Sampsonite that is made on a dive boat with 21 divers + crew of 4. Needless to say it made moving around difficult at best. I noticed Moms Scubapro warrenty card on the deck and metioned to her but she said she didnt see a need for a warrenty on the BC,ok, I just shrug my shoulders.

 

We split into 2 groups , 11 and 10. The Dm's gave a brief talk about what to expect,signals,etc and dive plan, 60 ft for 30 mins. and off we went. I saw alot of broken coral and the fish were mediocore at best. A very average dive,which being in GC is really a huge disapointment.

 

We made a quick surface interval,no refreshments,fruit,NADA. I guess 21 divers would have been to hard or expensive to serve pineapple,juice,go figure 21 x $99 - cruise ships take.

 

Second dive, during our briefing we are told 40 feet around 50 mins. OK I guess. Then we are told if you want to dive with DM meet at mooring under the water or dive your own dive. Hmmmmm, I think. and off they go,below the water. I stayed with group from behind as I didnt want mask kicked off . Dm leads group off on another very average dive not really pointing out and sights,etc, just a quick pass by the sights. About that time I spot a nice 3' Barracuda and prepare to take a picture and out of no where teen son from sampsonite family decides to chase barracuda, I almost fainted, DM along with mom and dad never noticed JR peeling back and barracude swam away after giving a few nervious looks over its shoulder.JR hooked back up with family and continued the dive. The dive ended and once up on the ship crew remarked they needed to hurry as they had 1:30 dive they needed to make. They dropped us off at the tender boat pier and we disembarked , I did not see 1 person tip these guys or leave a tip in "Crabby the tip jar".

 

All in all a very disapointing expensive dive in what many consider a great dive destination. I would not recomend DF to anyone period, if you are new, someone needs to watch you better than they do, if you are experianced you wont like a 5 lb weight ruining your dive. Im sure they are better ops in GC and better things to see as these guys seem to only be interested in "Show me the Money". Me and my money will head to Cozumel next time.

[AlwaysReady2Go]

I am planning on diving in GC in March - also coming in on the Miracle. I am going to be doing the Eden Rock - Devil's Grotto shore dives. My husband and I are actually doing our OW certification dives in GC and Cozumel. Did you dive in Coz or Belize? We are planning on using Deep Blue XT Sea Diving in Coz and SeaSport in Belize - did you use either of these? Any tips for me regarding the Miracle. Thanks.

[michaelaz]

I would head over to www.scubaboard.com it is a GREAT dive website with TONS of individual forums covering everything from crusing to accidents to new diver questions to locations !!

 

I dove in Cozumel with Blue Angel divers, A really great dive experiance that put the topping on my christmas cruise. I did 3 tanks while my son and wife were able to snorkel,a great family excusion. Blue angel is located next to blu caribe hotel, about 1 1/2 miles east of ship pier or about $3 per person via taxi. I cannot recomend these guys enough. The managers name is Jeanie ,her email is

bluangel@fidmail.com here is their website http://www.cozumel-diving.net/BlueAngel/index.htm

 

I have heard great things about Christi at deep blue xt sea but she only takes 6 divers max and she was filled up, I understand you need 6 months out to book her.

 

As far as the GC I cannot and would not recomend Don Fosters and did not dive the other sites although I was told the belize excusion booked thru the ship picks you up at the ship and returns you to the ship and was a great dive !!

 

IF you have any other questions please ask !!

[bruce-r]

We are planning on using Deep Blue XT Sea Diving in Coz ....

 

You might be a bit confused. I'm thinking that you are planning on diving with Christi's operation, Blue XT Sea but not Deep Blue , a completely different but quite reputable dive operator. I also recommend Blue XT Sea. Excellent customer service and very reliable.

 

I would head over to http://www.scubaboard.com it is a GREAT dive website with TONS of individual forums covering everything from crusing to accidents to new diver questions to locations !!

 

Actually, scubaboard is down for maintenance at least until late Thursday but it will be a good source for information about dive operators once it is back up.

[AlwaysReady2Go]

Yes, your absolutely right it is Blue XT Sea with Christi - I have heard good things about her and the op - do you have personal experience with this dive op? Would love to hear it - thanks

[bruce-r]

Yes, you're absolutely right it is Blue XT Sea with Christi - I have heard good things about her and the op - do you have personal experience with this dive op?

 

As a matter of fact I do. I went out with them in March, 2004 when we stopped in Cozumel. I took a taxi to meet the boat, "Shamu", at the Caleta(sp) which is the small harbor just south of the cruise docks. It is a small fast boat with enough room for 6 divers and plenty of shade. If you dive with Eagleray divers you also have to take a taxi there to get to their boat. Anyway, I found the boat with no problems. Met the DM and the boat captain, Mago, and got my stuff onboard. They were happy to set up my gear, even though I usually do it myself. I did check the set up after they were done and with the exception of the tank being lower than I like, it was all good.

 

An aside here, I usually dive in cold water and it seems that most everyone locally sets up their gear with the tank higher in the BC. In warm water, it looks like most people set up the tank way low, so that the strap is very close to the shoulder of the tank. I don't like it that way 'cause the tank bottom hits me in my bottom.

 

So we get loaded and head out. I was the only cruiser so we headed North to pick of the 4 other divers. It added a few minutes to the trip, but I got to go by our ship and take some photos from the water. Usually the group will be asked "where do you want to dive today", but sometimes if the other divers are diving with Christi for several days in a row, the site might have been suggested the previous day. For my first time in Cozumel, it didn't really matter to me which sites we went to. I guess for my trip the first site was requested the day before because we went to Devils Throat. This is one of the more advanced dive sites which was fine for me, but they don't usually go to the advanced sites with divers they don't know. So we do a back roll entry 2 at a time, one person on the port and the other on the starboard to keep the boat balanced. The DM lead the dive the whole way and I think we surfaced more or less all together. They'll help you back into the boat by taking off your fins and even your BC if you have trouble climbing the ladder with it on. It was a fun dive, but I don't need to repeat it. After the first dive, large, soft, fluffy towels were passed out along with water and some snacks. Be sure to drink lots of water when you dive as being dehydrated is a large contributing factor for getting DCS. If you are cold there are large wind breakers to wear. They will also change tanks for you for the second dive. Expect the surface interval to last about 90 minutes. You'll stop at one of the beach clubs so you don't spend the time bobbing around in the boat. We stopped at Nachi Cocom, but it can change. It depends where the first site is and where your are going for the second dive. Christi met us there to see how things were going. She asked me if there was anything special I wanted to see. I told her I'd like to see a seahorse. She went to talk to the DM and I'm guessing that is what she told him because for the second dive we went to Las Palmas. Sometimes you can find seahorses there. We didn't get so lucky, but there was lots of other fish. On this dive we got to dive our own profile and surface in pairs as we got low on air. Everyone did a safety stop on both dives. The DM stayed down with whoever still had plenty of air, but it was really easy to follow them even at 15 feet because the vis was really good and they weren't that deep as it was the second dive. After the second dive I was given the option of being dropped off back at my ship, but I was to go meet up with my family at Chankanaab park after diving, so they offered me a ride there if I could wait until they dropped off the other divers. No problem.

 

I think that she has recently changed DM's, but I think that she has pretty high standards for employees so I would expect a good DM. She has the same boat captain, and this guy knows where things are and can drive that boat like Mario Andretti. He also can do magic tricks, so be sure to ask him about it during the surface interval.

 

Hope this is enough information. You'll have a good time with Blue XT Sea.

 

 

larger photo of Shamu